Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1887-12-15
.LAMARss REPORT.
operations of the Interior Depart.
ment For the Past Year.

Operations of the Interior Depart.
ment For the Past Year.
3ne Disposition of Public Lands-Entrie..
surveys Etc.-Work of the Pension
Bureau, Patent ONCE, In.
dian Bureau, Etc.
Secretary Laiaar, in his annual report of the
Skorauons OF the Interior Department., says:
fernaps the n ost difficult and important duty
Win which this department is charged ia the
administration CT the public land system The
tnea1er OF Its operations embraces nearly
tnree-fourths OF the area of the American States
sno territories, and the vital influence exer-
csed oy the distribution of land ownership
among the peopla renders the proper admins
tration OF the system OF profound Importance
10 the present and future prosperity of the
country.
,er existing laws it is apparent that the
area or our public land is rapidly diminishing.
This would not be evil If the lands were
passing from the Government to seats of
actual occupation by bona fde settlers or
bona hde purchasers for purposes of settle
ment Nothing tan be a surer safeguard in a
free community against the dominating in
fuences OF powerful corporations and COM
binatons of capital than body of indie
pendent small land owners living upon their
own freeholds But the facts are known to be
Otherwise. It is subject to which have been
much thought, and the Conclusion to which
have come Is that most of the troubles and
abuses that environ it can be removed by Iegis-
latlye action, and that such action is the sole
remedy.
A detailed statement Of the work performed in
the General Land Office and its various agencies
Throughout the Iuntry is fully set forth in the
report of the commissioner and the documents
herewith submitted 1t shows cemmendable
zeal in the purpose to preserve the public
domain, to prevent fraud and illegality in the
requirement of large areas of public land and
to re over them from unlawful possession and
appropriation.
The commissioner states that the following
amounts of lands have been restored to the pub
lie domain since March 4, 1885:
Acres
Area within railroad limits. sos, Ia 50
Area within railroad indemnity
mits- ss 6G0o
Fraudulent entries Cancelled. 100000. 90
Invalid swamp and other State Sc
iections Cancelled. ................ sec, 7Q. 46
Total restored to the public
In the effort to ascertain the PROMOTION of the
above amount which was restored during the
last fiscal year, caused a thorough examination
of the records of the Land Department to be
made but was unable to obtain the desired in
However, the investigation resulted in show
ing that from March s. 1885, to October /, 1887,
the number of entries cancelled for fraud,
illegality, abandonment and other causes
amount to 91,01S embracing an area of 1925,
913.4 acres making an aggregate of lands re-
stored to the public domain of 1868
ss4 acres In addition there are suits
In the United States courts and matters pend
ing before the department, involving the ques-
tion of the restoration of many millions more
10. or this amount 81, 500. S. acres were lad
Judged by the Commissioner to be subject to
recovery under the adjustment of railroad
grants, so far as such adjustments have been
completed" n.y. --Ss
DISPOSAL OF PUBLIC LANDS
From the report of the Commissioner of the
General Land Once it appears that the num-
Der of acres OF land disposed of during the past
fiscal year, under the various acts of Congress
gates s5,1114O.St, of which 746 1929 acres
were Indian I Lands ids ., 80 ralr ad ssleo
Showing am increase s Of 4.sss, s ss4. S.
receipts from disposal of the public lands were
$40 7S3, 217a; from sales ofIndian lands. 81. 49,
o1s Sa q To @ho 9vf IS
to be added s,29i received on account Of tim
Der depredatons, and sl2, 1885 received for
certified copies of records furnished by the
General Land Office, making receipts of that
bureau from all sources, S12, $50. 0oSS7
during the year was a4S17S, covering 81, 337,-
O3941 acres; an increase of ], no over the pre-
vious year: whilst the number Of original home.
stead entries was 52,02S covering an area Of
1884 5116 acres. decrease of 9,610 entries
and !, $50, 7S5. 60acres Final proof was made n
'commuted homestead entries and 321 pur-
chased under the act Of June 10, 1880; an in
presumption entries were 2l,4O3, embracing
S,112.411sO acres: an increase of 1851 entries
and of 500, 1874 acres.
Under the desert-land act 2242 entries were
made, embracing 751. Ola % acresi decrease Of
276 entries and 2,67454 acres.
Under the timber and stone act Of June 3,
1878. SIS entries, embracing SO,622 acres, were
made, being an increase of 226 entries and 3D.,
During the year 1882 mineral entries were
made, covering ss, 1872 acres. This is q de-
acres This does not include 81 coal entries,
covering II .46i acres. an increase of a entries
land of 1894 acres.
year upon agricultural lands was 24,55S, an in
crease of 4:ss3 over the previous year, &C
acoTding to the report of the commissioner,
4s,6f4.
Perhaps one Of the immediate effects of the
new methods adopted by the Land Office to in
sure more strict compliance with law in the
acquisition OF title to the public lands is shown
homestead. timber culture and desert-land en-
tries during the past year This decrease may
bearing legitimate fruit and that Spectators
and other evaders of the law have fonnd out
shat at it is not safe for them to attempt to
patent land without honest com pliance with
the necessary legal prerequisites. 1t also
shows that many patents hitherto issued
swithout the investigation necessary to deter
mine their bona fiCie fraudulent character
went to those who did not desire them for
BONES
UNLAWFUL ENCLOSURE OF THE PUBLIC LANDS.
The work of returning to the people the
large areas OF the puDnc lanu nlInertO Illegally
appropriated by corporations and individuals
engaged in the cattle business on the PLAINS,
has progressed most successfully during the
past year. The papers transmitted from the
General Land ONCE show that 465 illegal in
closures, aggregating in area, nearly 7,0O1,0O0
acres. have been reported In 133 of the cases,
involving 3.2750U0 acres, proceedings have
been instituted, and in 165 cases the special
agents report the removal complete or in prog
ress. of the illegal fences, throwing open to
public use and occupancy 3394,OO0 acres.
This does not include the work of the two
inspectors, Messrs. Bowers and Hunter sent
from my office to the territories of New Mex
leo and Wyoming. Through their agency
fences have been removed in 119 cases, en-
bracing an area of 800 00I acres of public land
making total of nearly 5,000000 acres restored
to the public domain. The first step taken to,
overthrow and stop this great and steadily in
creasing inclosure of the public lands came in
the act to prevent unlawful occupancy of the
public lands of FEBRUARY %, 1885, The passage
of this measure meeting with scarcely any
compliance by these hardened violators of the
law on August z, 1885, the President issued a
proclamation calling attention to the
Violation of this act and enjoined
the erection of their fences was arrested, and
some fences were removed in conformity to
this proclamation, even this warning from the
highest executive officer of the Nation was dis
regarded among these men who had been for
SO long a time law unto themselves. AT this
point was provided by Congress with two in
spectors for public land service. They were
sent at once to New Mexico and Wyoming, and
have since September, 1885,, been chiefly en-
Moved in their respective Territories in en-
forcing the removal of illegal Enclosures From
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